Teachers' perspectives on the challenges of teaching physical education in urban schools: the student emotional filter

The purpose of this study was to analyze how the challenges of urban schools influence physical education teachers' emotional understanding and connections with their students and the implications on their teaching. Sixty-one elementary physical educators from an urban school district in the midwestern U.S. were interviewed multiple times (N = 136) over 3 years using interpretive methodology. Teachers reported five unique challenges that significantly shaped their thinking about students and their careers, along with strategies they used to overcome or manage those challenges. The challenges were: (a) insufficient instructional resources, (b) implementing culturally relevant pedagogy, (c) dealing with community violence, (d) integrating more games in curricula, and (e) teaching in a culture of basketball. Implications centered on the guilt-inducing nature of urban teaching, developing an informed and realistic vision of urban physical education, and the role of teacher preparation and professional development.     

Writing for Social Scientists: How to Start and Finish Tour Thesis,Book, or Article.

Underlined by the belief that teachers' critical awareness of their actions is a vital issue in education, this study examines the insights that evolved from a long-term collaboration among seven doctoral students. To prepare for our comprehensive examinations, we collaborated as a study group for one and one-half years. Adopting the dual roles of listener-researcher and narrator-participant, we engaged in dialogue and narrative to convey to each other the meaning of our collaborative experiences. From grounded theory analysis, four elements of collaboration emerged: logistics, social dynamics, empowerment, and change. In order to convey the meaning of our experiences, we create a multiplicity of meanings based on our diverse and lived personal narratives. Finally, our collaborative process challenges academic administrations to examine how well their current policies encourage personal autonomy and cooperative learning approaches for students involved in preparing for their comprehensive examinations.